I want to be loved, adored, and committed to. I want to be someone’s first choice and to be wholly sought after even through all the noise. In a recent interaction with the Lord Jesus, I was freshly reminded that He wants these things too. Part of being made in the image of God means that my innermost desires, along with my outward appearance, reflect Him. I have wasted a good amount of time wondering what the Lord wants from me, when He gave me a clear picture in myself from the beginning. The Lord is a being of deep feeling, and so are we. Especially me, lol. So, I have been appreciating this at a individual and communal level.
Individually, it has been really sweet having long-time prayers answered through His arranging of situations that are not so ideal. When you ask the Lord to sanctify you, trust me, He will do it. The main shift I have noticed is in my attitude toward marriage. For several years, marriage and everything surrounding it was all I thought about and wanted. After passing though a very destructive and dark situation, I was broken down by the Lord and opened to the truth about marriage and dating/ courtship.
First, I was given a vision by God for the marriage between Christ and the church— and not only how earthly marriage is meant to be a picture of that, but how it is for the glory of God. Marriage was ordained by God before the fall of men, meaning it was not just a quick solution to help man fulfill his needs in a God-glorifying way, but a precious matter that was on God’s heart in eternity past. In six days the Lord spoke creation into being and formed man with His hands. He then said, “it is not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18). If Adam is made in the image of God, doesn’t this mean that the Lord is also referring to Himself?! This means that God too needs a counterpart. It sounds controversial to say that God has a need, but in actuality it is not such a hot take. The Lord Himself is perfect in every way, but that doesn’t mean He is complete. Although the head of a body is perfect in its own right, it needs a body to function and do things; to complete it. Colossians 1:18 says, “He is the head of the body, the church.” And Ephesians 5:22-23 says, “wives, be subject to your own husbands as to the Lord, for a husband is head of the wife as also Christ is Head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the Body.” This means the counter part God wants is the church itself, how profound. So, as a picture of His own quest, God had Adam go through all the animals and he did not find a counterpart/ helpmate among them (Genesis 2:20). Adam did not find a partner in the animals because they did not match him, none were of his likeness. Then, God put Adam into a deep sleep and took a rib from Adam and built Eve out of him (Genesis 2:22). This picture points to the New Testament principle of the church being built out of Christ Himself for the purpose of His bride being His match. In light of this revelation, it is clear to see that marriage is very close to the heart of the Lord and should be honored by all (Hebrews 13:4).
A brother shared with me that marriage is “not about what you get out of it, but what you bring into it.” Marriage is not for the self, but for God— to express and reflect His heart for the church, His bride. I always wanted to be married because I wanted companionship and to be able to fulfill my desires in a God-honoring way, but now I see that marriage is so much bigger than that.
Amen, I want my future marriage to be a reflection of the marriage between Christ and His church-bride that will take place at the end of this age. I want my future marriage to be for the building up of the body, so that the Lord can come back and have His mature bride. Revelation 19:7 says, “Let us rejoice and exult, let us give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” The Lord coming back all depends on His bride being ready, we can actually hasten the Lord’s coming by preparing ourselves (2 Peter 3:11-12).
Praise the Lord for allowing us to go through shitty situations and helping us receive those situations from Him as our portion. Faithful is He who calls us Who also will do it (1 Thessalonians 5:24)! It is truly His mercy to break down our walls and concepts, because it is in His doing so that we can be built up in the body and live out our purpose as functioning/ feeling members.
Now that there is a sense of understanding in what the “body” of Christ is (the members/ people that love Him), I can go into what I meant by enjoying the Lord’s feeling at a communal level. As a member of the body, it is almost customary to feel what is going on in all parts of the body. It would be impossible to have a broken arm and be completely apathetic toward it. Thus, in the body of Christ, it would be virtually impossible for a member of the body to be in pain and the other members to be apathetic toward that member. It is so sweet to be connected to a group of people where there is true feeling for one another. A member can be going through something and everyone has the same mind and feeling as the Lord toward that person. 1 Corinthians 6:17 explains that a person who is joined to the Lord is one spirit. This means that we can have the same feeling and mind as the Lord about situations and people. Paul says that “all things cohere in [the Lord]” (Colossians 1:17), which further explains how we can all have the same mind in Christ.
I have experienced in my own situations the saints coming together in prayer for me, each with their own feeling to do so from the Lord. It is a marvelous thing, the oneness of the Body. I have also been on the other end of things and seen saints (from different parts of the world, without even knowing the actual situation) feeling a leading from the Lord to pray for a certain member and by those prayers the member passes though the situation saying amen. It is truly the Lord’s involvement when a saint can take an undesirable situation from the Lords hand with grace and faith.
When I consider my current situations, I can only say amen because of the prayers of the saints. And I am saying amen!! I am saying amen to a very uncomfortable exposure, a broken heart, the loss of a loved one, the sickness of friends, being dealt with by the Lord, and a life of constant struggle. Praise God for these situations, they are for the building up of the body. Amen. It is only by the prayers of the saints that I can cling to the Lord in such a time, and listen to what He has to tell me about His own heart. Thank You Lord, for opening me to You through the prayers of the saints.
Ashley's Adventures 